Blondel de Nesle (EN)

Blondel de Nesle, *ca. 1155 Nesle (Somme department), †ca. 1200, Picardy trouvère. He maintained friendly relations with his contemporary trouvères Gace Brulé and Conon de Béthune. In the absence of more detailed information about his life, he was mistakenly associated with the legend of Richard the Lionheart’s minstrel, also named Blondel. Blondel de Nesle’s works, of which a total of 24 songs devoted exclusively to the theme of love have survived, often have a regular canzo structure. They were highly valued and extremely popular in the Middle Ages. They have survived in many copies and versions; they were widely used in numerous contrafacta, including Gautier de Coinci’s Miracles de Notre Dame, and in polyphonic compositions, such as Walter de Chatillon’s conductus Ver pacis aperit, composed in 1179 on the occasion of the coronation of Philip II of France in Reims, and in two motets using the melody of the song L’amours dont sui epris. Blondel de Nesle’s works also served as a model for German minnesingers. Ulrich von Gutenberg based his song Ich hôrte wol ein merlîkin singen on the melody and text of Bien doit chanter qui fine Amors adreche. Blondel de Nesle is considered one of the most outstanding representatives of the first generation of trouvères.

Literature: P. Tarbé Les oeuvres de Blondel de Nesle, «Collections des poètes de Champagne antérieurs au XVIe siècle» XIX, Reims, 1862; L. Wiese Die Lieder des Blondel de Nesle, “Gesellschaft für romanische Literatur” V, Dresden 1904; H. Husmann Zur Rhytmik des Trouvèregesanges, “Die Musikforschung” V, 1952; U. Aarburg Ein Beispiel zur mittelalterlichen Kompositionstechnik. Die Chanson R. 1545 von Blondel de Nesle und ihre mehrstimmigen Vertonungen, “Archiv für Musikwissenschaft” XV, 1958; J. Maillard Anthologie de chants de trouvères, Paris 1967; H. van der Werf The Chansons of the Troubadours and Trouvères, Utrecht 1972.